TO ALEXANDRA KOLLONTAI

Written:Written between September 8 and 13, 1915Published:First published in 1924 inLenin Miscellany II.

      Sent from Sörenberg to Christiania.

      Printed from the original.Source:Lenin
	  Collected Works,

      Progress Publishers,1971,

      Moscow,Volume 36,

      pages346-347.Translated:Andrew RothsteinTranscription\Markup:R. CymbalaPublic Domain:Lenin Internet Archive.You may freely copy, distribute,
	display and perform this work, as well as make derivative and
	commercial works. Please credit “Marxists Internet
	Archive” as your source.

DearAlexandra Mikhailovna,

Itwill be a great pity if your trip to America finally falls
through. We pinned many hopes on this visit: for the
publication in the U.S.A. of our booklet (Socialism and War,
which you will receive in a few days), for connections with
the publisher Charles H.
Kerr[1]in Chicago in general,
for mobilising the internationalists and lastly for the
financial help which we so badly need for all those vital affairsin Russiaof which you write (and justly emphasise their
urgency, in view of the desirability of our coming closer to
Russia. The obstacles there arechieflyfinancial, and also
of a police nature; can one get there safely?).

Ifthe question of a trip has been finally decided in the
negative sense, try and think over whether you could (through
connections with Charles H. Kerr, etc.) help us to publish
our booklet in English? This can be doneonlyin America.
We aresendingyou the German edition of our booklet. Do
everything you can for its sale in the Scandinavian
countries (it is terribly important for us to cover some of the
expenses at least, otherwise wecannotpublish it in
French!).

Writein greater detail, more concretely and more
frequently (if you are not going to America) about the practical
questions arising in Russia, who is raising them, how, on
what occasions and in what circumstances. All this is of
extreme importance for the publication of leaflets—avitalquestion, as you rightly say. About the conference of the
Left (where we rallied well as an opposition, although we
did sign the manifesto) you will be partly informed by thedelegateyousent,[2]and partly we shall later tell you in
writing.

(Weare very short of cash! That is themaintrouble!)

Bestregards,Yours,Lenin

[1]CharlesH.Kerr—an American publisher of socialist literature, with
whom Alexandra Kollontai negotiated by letter on the
publication in English of the pamphletSocialism and WarandInternationale FlugblätterNo. 1. It did not prove possible to issue the
pamphlet in America.

[2]Anapparent reference to T. Nerman, who took part in the First
International Socialist Conference as a delegate from the
Norwegian Socialist Youth Organisation.